Researchers from the University of Waterloo, led by Mohammadjavad Abbaspour, have developed an intelligent energy management system for indoor farming that could significantly reduce energy costs and consumption. The team, including Mukund R. Shukla, Praveen K. Saxena, and Shivam Saxena, presented their findings in a study published in the journal Applied Energy. Their work focuses on optimizing artificial lighting in indoor farms, a major energy consumer in this sector.
Indoor farming allows for year-round crop production but relies heavily on artificial lighting, which can drive up energy costs and peak load charges. The researchers discovered that plants can tolerate brief interruptions in light, enabling them to design flexible 24-hour lighting schedules that align with day-ahead electricity pricing. This approach allows growers to reduce energy costs by using less light during peak price periods and more during off-peak times.
The team implemented their strategy using a model predictive control framework, which uses forecasts of solar radiation and electricity prices to optimize lighting schedules. They also incorporated transformer-based neural networks to improve the accuracy of these forecasts. To ensure plant health, the researchers conducted real-world experiments on lettuce crops to determine minimum light exposure requirements and suitable dark-light intervals, which were then incorporated as constraints in their model.
Simulations based on real electricity market data from Ontario demonstrated the potential of this approach. For a one-hectare greenhouse, the strategy resulted in an annual cost reduction of $318,400 (20.9%), a peak load decrease of 1.6 MW (33.32%), and total energy savings of 1890 MWh (20.2%) compared to a baseline lighting recipe. These findings suggest that intelligent lighting control could make indoor farming more sustainable and economically viable.
For the energy sector, this research highlights the potential of flexible demand strategies in reducing energy costs and consumption. By aligning energy use with price signals, indoor farms can contribute to grid stability and reduce the need for peak generation capacity. This approach could be applied to other energy-intensive industries where processes can be scheduled flexibly.
This article is based on research available at arXiv.